Summer Solstice officially happened at 10:04pm on June 20th, and today is the longest day of the year. Although the weather outside might beg to differ, it is now officially summer! Also coming to a shoreline near you this weekend are the lowest low tides of the year, which makes for some great opportunities to go out and explore some of Oregon’s great tidepooling areas with the family.

Oregon Parks and Recreation Department has been developing some cool new resources to help individuals better understand the connections between intertidal habitats like tidepools and the offshore rocks, reefs and newly protected marine reserves. Summer is a great time to explore the tidepools along the Oregon coast and OPRD’s new tidepools webpage has some great tools to help you make the most of your exploration, learn more about the species you might find, and to remember good tidepooling etiquette. Check out their cool new video to better understand how these special areas are all connected!